Speed-controlling mechanism



N. LOMBARD.

SPEED CONTROLLING MECHANISM.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 20, 1915.

Patented June 3, 1919.

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SPEED CONTROLLING MECHANISM.

APPLICATION HLEMEPL 20. 1915.

Patentd June 3, 1919.

2 SHEETSSHEET 2.

NATHANIEL LOMBARD, OF WORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO HOLYOKE MACHINE COMPANY, OF MASSACHUSETTS. I

WORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS, A CORPORATION OF SPEED-CONTROLLING MECH'AN ISM.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, NATHANIEL LOMBARD, a citizen of the United States, residing at Worcester, in the county of Worcester and Commonwealth of Massachusetts, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Speed-Controlling Mechanism, of which the following, together with the accompanying drawings, is a specification.

The present invention relates to a speed controlling mechanism, and is particularly concerned with the provision of a mechanism of this class which is adapted to limit the speed of large water wheels, such as those employed to operate the grinders in pulp mills. The equipment of such wheelsand other similar prime movers with governing mechanism, adapted to maintain them at a constant speed, under varying conditions of load and water pressure, involves a large expense and the provision of complicated and sensitive devices, acting on the gate which controls the water supply, to render said gate delicately and instantly responsive to variations in the speed of the wheel. Since the prime consideration under the special circumstances outlined above, is the avoidance of excessive speeds which might cause bursting of the grinder, a speed controlling mechanism which prohibits the attainment of such excessive speeds, without reference to the automatic return of the wheel to so-called normal speed, and without reference to an automatic increase in speed when the same falls below normal, has been found most economical and efficient for the purposes described. The present invention aims to provide a mechanism having the above described principle of operation, and effecting a positive reduction in the speed of the wheel when said speed exceeds a predetermined maximum; the gate being subject thereafter to manual control, to attain any speed desired below said predetermined maximum. The mechanism by which this result is accomplished is fully set forth in the following description and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a perspective view of the apparatus embodied in my'inventi'on.

Specification of Letters Patent.

v Patented June 3, 1919.

Application filed September 20, 1915. Serial No. 51,623.

Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view of a port on of said apparatus.

1g. 3 1s a detail sectional view on line 3 3, Fig. 2.

1 Similar reference characters refer to similar partsin the different figures.-

Referring first to Fig. 2, there is shown a housing 1, which supports and incloses a centrifugal governor-2 of ordinary construction. The governor shaft 3, which is hollow, for the passage of a reciprocating governor rod 4, isrotated by gearing 5 from a shaft 6, driven directly by a pulley 7, having a belt connection with a shaft 49. The latter is geared, as at 50, to a shaft 32 which is driven constantly from the shaft 5 l'of Water wheel 52 by a pulley 36 and belt connection 53. The weighted members 8, 8 of the governor act in the well known manner upon the rod 4, which is maintained by the springs 9, 9, approximately in the position shown in Fig. 2, under normal operating conditions of thewater wheel. When the speed of said wheel exceeds a predetermined maximum, the outward movement .of' members 8, 8 serves to depress rod 4, causingthe latter to inaugurate the action of the gate controlling devices in the manner about to be described.

The housing 1 also supports a single-acting piston cylinder 10, having a pipe connection 11 with a valve casing 12 disposed interiorly of said housing. The valve casing 12 provides a chamber 13 in direct communication. with the cylinder 10 through pipe connection 11, and .also normally in communication with the atmosphere through a gravity check valve 14. open, as shown in Fig. 2, by the support, afforded its valve stem 15 by a tongue 16 on the free end of a lever 17, pivoted to the casing, and enlarged intermediate its ends, as shown at 18, Fig. 3, to provide for the pivotal connection thereto of the rod 4, which normally supports said lever in the position shown. The casing 12 provides a second chamber 19, in constant communica-x tion'through a pipe connection 20 with a pressure tank 21, Fig. 1, in which 'a supply of compressedair, or other pressure medium, is'maintained, in any well known manner, as by a pump 22. A valve 23, normally The latter is held held closed by a spring 24, controls the flow of pressure fluid from the chamber 19 to the chamber 13; the stem 25 of valve 23 extends into the path of the tongue 16 of lever 17, being spaced slightly therefrom, as shown in Fig. 2, when the rod 4% is in normal position.

The cylinder 10 contains a piston 26 having a rod 27 projecting through the casing l, and secured to a sleeve 28, which is .pivoted, as shown at 29, in the forked end of a vertical lever 30, ,pivoted at 31. The lever 30, intermediate its ends, provides a ournal bearing for one end of the horizontal shaft 52, the other end of which is journaled in a bearing 33, capable of swinging about the vertical axis of its t-runnions 34 in a bracket 35 receiving said trunnions. The shaft '32 is constantly rotated in any well known manner, as by the belt connection 53, from the water wheel shaft 51 with the pulley 36 on said shaft. The shaft '82 has keyed thereto a friction. wheel 37, and in the position of the piston '26, shown in Fig. 2, a spring 38, acting through the piston rod '27 on the lever 30, 'y ie'ldingly maintains the shaft 32 in the direction of the housing 1, Fig. 1, so that the periphery of rotating wheel 37 is slightly spaced from the periphery of a friction wheel 39, on a shaft 40.

The shaft l0 is manually rotatable to vary the gate opening ofthe water wheel, the

same, in the present instance, being indicated as a rotary valve device within a casing 54;, which is operable to control communication between -a supply conduit 5'5 and the pipe 56 leading to the water wheel.

The sleeve 28 provides an extension l1, passing loosely through the free end of a lever 42 which ispivoted at 43 and is disposed substantia-lly parallel to the lever 30. The projecting .end or extension 41 has pivoted thereto, by means o-ta pin let, a locking member 45, which, "in the position shown in Fig. 1, forces the lever l2 toward the housing 1, and holds a shoe l6, carried {by said lever, against the periphery of wheel 39 to prevent rotation of said wheel. When the member 45 is rotated, on the pin A l through ninety degrees, to bring its normal-1y "horizontal side in contact with the face of lever 42, the latter is enabled "to rock outwardly, under the pressure exerted by a spring 47, confined on the extension 41 between lever 42 and a collar 48. The pressure of shoe-4'6 is thereby taken ofi the wheel 39, enabling the shaft 40 to 'be manually rotated. to open or close the gate of the water wheel.

The operation of the speed controlling mechanism is as follow-s:ilnder all conditions, except when the speed of the water wheel goes above a predetermined maximum, the governing mechanism is inoperative and maintains the relation 0t parts shown and described with reference to Figs. 1 and 2,

the spring 38 acting to draw the extension 41 inward toward the housing 1, and thereby holding the shoe 46 against the wheel 39, to prevent. movement of the shaft 40 and the gate. fit is desired to change-the gate opening, the locking member 45 is rocked, releasing the wheel 39 from the shoe, and permitting the manual rotation of shaft 40, after which the member i5 is returned to the position shown in Fig. 1, to hold the wheel. and shaft stationary. The mechanism is adjusted so that the attainment of .a predetermined maximum speed by the wheel will cause the weighted members 8, 8 to diverge enough to depress the rod 4 and thereby carry tongue 16 against the valve stem 25, opening valve 23 against the pressure of spring 24 and allowing the gravity valve 14 to close. The pressure prevailing in chamber 19 is thereby'made eflec'tive against piston 26, moving the rod :27 and extension ll outwardly, against the yielding pressure of spring '38. Thelevers 30 and 42 we thereby rocked simultaneously about their pivots, the rocking of "lever 42 carrying shoe 46 away from the wheel 39, and the rocking oi lever '30 carrying the constantly rotating wheel 37 into contact with wheel 39, to cause the rotation of the latter and the shaft 46) in a direction to eflect the closing movement of the gate. As the supply of water to the wheel is thus decreased, the speed of the wheel becomes lower and lower, until the members :8, 8 are no longer ableto maintain the rod 4 depressed. The upward movement of said rod by the springs 9, 9 permits the valve to close, and opens the valve 14, thereby releasing the pressure .on piston '26. and allowing the spring 38"to return the levers 30 and d2 to normal position. "This action of spring 38 causes themovement of wheel '37 away-from frictional contact with wheel 39,, stopping the closing movement of the gate, and also causes the shoe 456 to move against wheel '39, holding the gate in the partly closed position to which ithas been moved.

I claim,

1. 1m apparatus of the character described, the combination with agate con; trolling member of a water wheel, of an actuating means therefor normally held out of operative position, and means responsive to an increase only in the speed of said wheel for moving said actuating means into operative position whereby the position assumed "by saidgate controlling member in EU sponse to its actuation is unchanged by the ensuing reduction in speed of said wheel;

,2. In apparatus of the character Idescribed, the combination with a gate .eon-.

normally held out of operative position, and means responsive to an increase in the speed of said wheel for simultaneously releasing said retaining means and for moving said actuating means into operative position.

3. In apparatus of the character described, the combination With a gate controlling member of a Water wheel, of means for retaining said gate controlling member in a predetermined position, means for releasing said retaining means to permit the manual adjustment of said gate controlling member, an actuating means for said gate controlling member normally held out of operative position, and means responsive to an increase in the speed of said Wheel for simultaneously releasing said retaining means and for moving said actuating means into operative position.

4. In apparatus of the character described,

the combination with a gate controlling member of a water Wheel, an actuating means therefor normally held out of operative position, pressure actuated means for moving said actuating means into operative position, and means responsive only to an increase in the speed of the wheel for rendering said pressure actuated means ef fective. I 5. In apparatus of the character described, the combination with a gate controlling member of a Water wheel, of means responsive to an increase in the speed of said Wheel for inaugurating the gate-closing movement of said member, and means for retaining said member in the position to which it is moved, after the speed of the Wheel has been decreased.

6. In apparatus of the character described, the combination with a gate con-- trolling member of a Water Wheel, of a constantly rotating actuating means therefor normally held out of operative position, and means responsive to an increase only in the speed of said Wheel for moving said actuating means into operative position to inaugurate the gate-closing movement of said member whereby the position assumed by said gate controlling member in response to its actuation is unchanged by the ensuing reduction in speed of said Wheel.

7. In speed controlling mechanism of the character set forth, the combination with a movable speed regulating member, of an actuating means therefor normally held out of operative position, pressure actuated means for moving said actuating means into operative position, and means responsive only to an increase in the speed of the device whose speed is to be controlled, for rendering said pressure actuated means effective.

8. In speed controlling mechanism of the character set forth, for regulating the supply of motive fluid to a prime mover, the combination with a movable regulating member, of an actuating means therefor normally held out of operative position, and means responsive only to an increase in the speed of said prime mover for moving said actuating means into operative position whereby the position assumed by said regulating member in response to the movement of said actuating means is unchanged by the ensuing reduction in speed of said prime mover.

Dated this seventeenth day of September,

NATHANIEL LOMBARD. Witnesses:

NELLIE WHALEN, PENELOPE CoMBERBAoH.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. G. 

